Police station attack: Tweak education system to fight extremism

 

It was a most brazen act.

Imagine attacking a police station. That is what a man identified as Radin Romyullah Radin Imran did about 2.45am on May 17.

The 21-year-old entered the Ulu Tiram police station in Johor and killed two policemen – constable Ahmad Azza Fahmi Azhar, 22, and constable Muhamad Syafiq Ahmad Said, 24 – before being shot dead by another policeman.

According to the police, Radin fatally slashed the neck of one policeman with a parang before taking the latter’s gun and opening fire at two other policemen, killing one and injuring the other. The injured policeman managed to fire and kill Radin.

Initially police suspected Radin had links with the terror group Jemaah Islamiyah (JI), based on his father’s past association with JI. But inspector-general of police Razarudin Husain said on May 18 that further investigations found that Radin had no links to JI.

Home minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail also told the media that it was the act of a “lone wolf” and not that of any extremist group.
Was the youngster motivated by some extremist ideology? Was he mentally unstable? Was he angry over some injustice?

Now that he’s dead, we are unlikely to know what motivated Radin to attack a police station.

Razarudin had earlier said the youth had come prepared with a bag strapped around his chest. “The bag was filled with metal sheets, a piece of zinc, and other objects, which was used as a shield, akin to a bulletproof vest,” the IGP had said

Police will have to piece together the evidence they have to come to some understanding of Radin’s motive.

However, what happened shows that the authorities can never be too careful. The IGP said security at police stations would be enhanced.

But that won’t be enough.

Seven people – including five of Radin’s family members and two university students – were remanded for seven days from May 18 following the attack on the police station.

Police suspect they may have JI connections.

More than ever, police should not lower their guard. They should especially keep an eye on those with extremist views.

We do not want Malaysia to go down the path of some other nations, notably Afghanistan.

The authorities should know – from the experience of countries such as Pakistan and Afghanistan – that extremism often breeds in religious schools.

Jakim and state Islamic authorities should therefore keep an eye on Islamic religious schools, groups and preachers in the country. They should ensure that teachers at religious schools do not introduce extremist interpretations of Islam.

It is important to select sane, thinking people to teach at all learning institutions, especially religious schools where a focus on the “superiority” of one religion can have serious consequences if not handled well.

The root cause of extremism is often a grievance of some sort. Linking it to religion gives the person or group a sense of purpose, even divine purpose.

The fact of life is that everyone has some grievance at one time or another against individuals, organisations, society and the state – and even against God when hardship follows hardship.

What we need to do is educate people to understand that their grievances cannot be rectified by violent means and that to be religious means following the path of peace and mutual respect.

This is where our education system needs to be modified to stress on students in all schools – whether national or national-type or Islamic – that the best way to solve problems in a democratic society is through debate and discussion and the vote, and not through quarrels and violent means.

It has been found that a sense of hopelessness, a lack of self-worth and a feeling of powerlessness makes youths not only ripe for extremists to win over but also for those with political or religious agendas to manipulate.

Our education system must therefore engender in students a sense of faith in themselves and an understanding that power comes from acquiring better knowledge and being better educated.

Students must be taught to belief in themselves and their abilities, and to think for themselves – not just blindly trust someone else or an ideology.

Injecting a daily dose of healthy values – such as mutual respect, acceptance of diversity, putting themselves in the shoes of others, and being open minded – into school lessons can help reduce prejudice, ill will, fear of the other and misunderstandings.

One of our biggest problems is the “us” versus “them” thinking among an increasing number of people, fuelled largely by political parties and preachers.

This sort of thinking is dangerous. Schools must teach students to have the “we together” or “unity in diversity” thinking. This is crucial.

Research shows extremist groups frame themselves as being superior to others to give followers a sense of self-worth and belonging.

The education system should be so tuned that it does not allow such framing or attitudes – which, if we are honest, is already present in our society – to grow deeper roots.

Extremist organisations may be attractive to those who feel isolated from society or discriminated against as the brotherhood it engenders gives them a sense of belonging and purpose.

So, the government should create more opportunities for young people to get involved in youth movements, sports and other activities where they will feel part of a healthy group and, by extension, part of the larger society.

Youths should feel that equal and adequate educational and employment opportunities are available to all citizens.

They must be made to feel empowered, and one way would be to include them in drawing up national or state policies through such means as public discussions and surveys.

Greater democratisation, rather than greater restrictions on individuals and groups, is needed to give youths a sense of empowerment.

The government must not discriminate against any group. It must be fair and just so that it can win the trust of all citizens.

Importantly, government policies and programmes must be inclusive; and it must respect the rights of everyone so that every citizen feels he or she belongs to the nation.

This is especially important when we take note of the fact that membership in extremist groups gives followers a sense of belonging and of pursuing a cause – these days often in the name of religion – for which they would willingly risk their life.

In other words, state policies and programmes must build bridges and not create more cleavages – whether racial, religious or territorial – among Malaysian citizens.

How much of this the government implements will reflect on how much importance it gives to ensuring extremism does not spread in Malaysia and that we do not go the way of some other nations whose people continue to suffer. - FMT

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.